Restorative justice is at the core of Hampton’s efforts to redevelop a historical Black neighborhood.
That’s according to Gabe Diaz, director of the city’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
“I think individuals in certain pockets of our community have felt left out for some time in the decision-making and what the future of their communities look like,” Diaz said.
Diaz wants to ensure no one is left with that sentiment once plans for Olde Hampton are done.
The city wants to reinvigorate the Olde Hampton neighborhood by reconstructing Grant Street, improving neighborhood amenities and potentially constructing new homes in the area.
Grant Street’s history dates to the Civil War and Reconstruction, when Black people seeking freedom settled in contraband camps near Fort Monroe and spread from there to Olde Hampton and beyond.
The neighborhood has had multiple nicknames in its more than a century of history, ranging from Slabtown to Black Wall Street in the early 1900s.
“The Olde Hampton neighborhood was very much a self-sufficient community here within Hampton with very prominent community members that lived there,” Diaz said. “It was very much a pillar in the downtown footprint.”
Things changed during a wave of redevelopment in the 1960s. Homes were demolished and roads widened, and a major street that led into the downtown corridor – Grant Street – was cut off. A vestige of the roadway remains as Grant Circle today.
“Many of the individuals that did business downtown didn't have that access point, they didn't have the traffic anymore,” Diaz said. “Traffic drives business, business makes money and money sustains communities.”
Though the community continued on, Diaz said it felt the impact of rerouted traffic in its collective pocketbook. It’s that history that inspires Diaz to want to do right by residents as the city reimagines the neighborhood.
“It felt like a social obligation that we had,” he said.
Diaz’s office has been at the forefront of community engagement surrounding Grant Street redevelopment work. Conversation about possibilities in Olde Hampton involving the Peninsula Community Foundation started in 2015, prior to Diaz’s arrival.
“We’re just lighting the spark for the fire that’s already in these communities.”
The project is the Hampton DEI office’s first major foray into engagement work surrounding neighborhood development. Diaz said it’s taken the form of regular meetings with the Olde Hampton Community Association and the Mary W. Jackson Neighborhood Center Steering Committee as well as other public meetings, community surveys and neighborhood canvassing.
“We were very intentional about polling the community and finding out what [residents] want to see in Hampton,” Diaz said. “We wanted to make sure that we met them with sincerity and transparency, and with an opportunity for them to have decision-making power.”
While significant parts of the redevelopment in Olde Hampton are still being planned, some parts, like the construction of the Mary W. Jackson Neighborhood Center, are completed.
But there remains work to be done. The reconstruction of the cut-off Grant Street, aided by funding from the Virginia Department of Transportation, is expected to finish by the end of 2025. And the city is eyeing new housing development near to the Jackson Center along Grant Street, something highlighted in resident input.
Olde Hampton is designated by the city as a housing venture area in city planning documents, which directs funds toward “concentrated efforts of assistance” due to “low- and moderate-income status, age of housing, opportunity for improvement, and strategic location near economic and transportation centers.”
“The survey results have shown that the majority of individuals are looking for single-family detached homes, but with some option for mixed use,” Diaz said .
Diaz’s office has heard many residents want to see affordable homes built with quality materials, accommodations for seniors aging in place and large porches.
“It really lets me know that people want to be communal,” he said. “People want to enjoy their neighborhood, people want to sit out and take in the sights. It is nestled directly in front of a park and a community center.”
No housing has been approved at this time and no developer has been contracted to construct any new housing in the neighborhood. Should the city council approve one of multiple options for the neighborhood, construction would not start until work on Grant Street finishes in 2025.
“They’re all just potential options for council,” Diaz said of current housing development plans on Grant Street. “We haven’t made any formal recommendation.”
Diaz said this project won’t be the last time Hampton will engage with residents on this level. A new division called the Community Action Team, housed under the city’s community engagement manager, will be part of the efforts in the future.
“It’s not going to be a one-and-done,” he said. “If you want to do it right [then] you’ve got to take the time, you’ve got to slow it down, you’ve got to consider all the parties involved, impacted and that can support these efforts.
“That’s where the trust is built.”
